


Broken Trust

by fandomgeek14



Series: Running in the Zombie Apocalypse [3]
Category: Zombies Run!
Genre: 5am, Angst with a Happy Ending, F/M, I'm Bad At Summaries, Pre-Relationship, Spoilers for S2M4, We Used To Be Friends, but apparently not yet, i said i'd stop with the angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-05
Updated: 2020-08-05
Packaged: 2021-03-06 00:49:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,447
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25734586
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fandomgeek14/pseuds/fandomgeek14
Summary: Sam spots Runner Five whilst he's relaxing in Abel's communication's hut, heading right in the path of a crisp factory occupied by Dedlocks, under New Canton's communication operator's guidance....needless to say, Runner Five is about to see what happens when you put her life in danger when Sam's watching...
Relationships: Runner Five & Archie Jensen, Runner Five & Sam Yao, Runner Five/Sam Yao
Series: Running in the Zombie Apocalypse [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1865143
Kudos: 13





	Broken Trust

It wasn’t unusual for Sam to pick up another runner from another settlement on his cameras or comms in the communications shack at Abel.

But it was unusual today.

He’d just been relaxing in the shack on his break, no missions for the rest of the day, digging into a saved jar of Marmite, daydreaming, mostly about a certain Runner that had somehow entered a special place in his heart and how long it would be until he laid eyes on his best friend when he’d spotted some movement on his camera out of the corner of his eye. He turned his head to take a look and see if he needed to report it to Janine or The Major. Only to see something, or someone, that made him smile instead. Red hoodie, green rucksack, short brown hair in a pixie cut that was actually getting pretty long? That was Runner Five, Abel Township's Runner Five, the runner he was head over heals in love with, running towards the crisp factory.

 **the same crisp factory that was mentioned in the Rofflenet email a week ago, the one crawling with yellow shirted gang known as the Dedlocks!**

Sam sprung to his desk throwing on his headset and switching on his microphone, knocking the Marmite in his hands onto the floor of the shack. 

_What was she doing? She had to know the Dedlocks were occupying that area, right? surely, she'd have seen the message or heard about it even if she didn't use Rofflenet that often! Oh God, what was she doing! she was going to get herself killed!_

“Runner Five! I can see you on my cameras, what the hell are you doing there? Never mind, never mind, just get out, no time for talking - run!”

The gunshots and the sudden urgent tone in his voice must have startled the runner who instantly started to do what he had told her to do, Sam sighed, _'oh, thank God, she could hear him, he wasn't going to lose her quite yet!'_ However, despite his relief at her being able to hear him, his panicked and concerned tone towards the Runner being so stupid and getting herself killed, didn’t waver when he spoke his next sentence.

“In case you didn’t know, Runner Five, those guys shooting at you - the ones in yellow T-shirts with “How Can I Help Today” written on them - yeah, they’re the Dedlocks. Careful, sniper to your left!” 

A gunshot rang out in his ear and he watched as Five dodged right just in time for a bullet to go sailing inches across from her face, speaking of her face, he got a clearer look at her at that point, and the expression was very telling. it was a mixture of fear and panic. She clearly had no idea what she’d just walked into. Which left only one reason why she would be in there, she was going on there on the orders of New Canton.

Sam felt his blood boil at that very notion...

Five dodged the gunshot to her left, the bullet whizzing past her, only a couple of inches away from her face, causing her to start to panic. Her breathing hitched and became laboured as her heart started pounding with fear, but nevertheless she kept running, like Sam told her to. speaking of Sam, she hadn't expected to hear him today. and she hadn't expected him to sound cross at her.

_She was just following orders._

_he had to understand that right? Nadia told her to do it, she was just trying to do what she was told. Nobody told her about these people, Dedlocks and Nadia told her that it was a simple run, so why was Sam angry at her?_ _surely he understood-_ her thoughts were interrupted by Sam’s voice again over the receiver once again.

 _ **“Now I come to think of it, you haven’t met Dedlocks before, have you, Five? Because Abel Township always keeps its runners clear of them.”**_ He paused for a second as if he was putting something together, _**“All the roads in the new town to the south of here are named after Dickens characters. That lot chasing you worked in the toy shop on Dedlock Avenue before it went pear-shaped. After that, it all went a bit Hunger Games. Everyone knows to steer clear of Dedlocks territory, and that they’ve been moving east, into the factory district. Isn’t that right, Nadia?”**_

Sam’s voice had a dangerous tone to it, when he directed it to Nadia. and Five had a sudden realisation. Sam wasn't angry at _her_ , he was angry at _New Canton_ , he was angry at Nadia and the fact that she was putting her in mortal danger. that would almost be romantic... if they were a thing. which, of course, Five had to remind everyone else a thousand times a day, they weren't. 

_**“No! Of course I didn’t know that, how could I?”**_ Nadia buzzed in innocently on her headset.

 _ **“Don’t lie to me! Intel about the factories went out on Rofflenet a week ago! We’re supposed to protect the runners, that’s our job! You sent Runner Five here to die!”**_ Sam suddenly snapped furiously, making Runner Five jump, she’d never heard Sam snap at anyone, _anyone_ and it scared her a little (and maybe turned her on a little as well) but what she heard in Nadia’s reply was infinitely more terrifying, she’d expected with the new alliance an _‘oh sorry I didn’t get that memo’_ , or a _‘I forgot about it, sorry Runner Five, we’ll bring you home now’_ instead, she received this, 

_**“What if I did? You shouldn’t have let me think Lem was still alive. You should never have let me think that!”** _

_**“Grow up! We’ve all lost someone, everyone has! That’s the - that’s the world now, that’s just the way it is! What gives you the right to -“ Sam paused “Uh, dammit! I’m losing sight of you, Five, but they’re all around. See that building straight ahead, the one with all the broken windows? Go inside, it’s the only chance. Hurry, run!”** _

Five didn’t hesitate and headed for the building, jumping inside through one of the broken windows on the ground floor, catching her hand on the broken glass as she entered, slid down and sat below the windowsill, to avoid getting shot whilst she caught her breath, grasping her bleeding hand, trying to process what had just happened. 

Nadia, tried to murder her. _Nadia,_ lead her into danger like a lamb to the slaughter! The person she was supposed to trust with keeping her safe whilst she was a refugee runner at New Canton, had just lead her knowingly into a factory full of people who were bound to kill her on sight! All because she was doing what Lem wanted and using the headset he gave her! She could feel tears from shock prickle the back of her eyes, no. _No!_ _She had to stay focused, she- she wanted to go home. She wanted to go back to Abel._

and to do that, he had to survive her time at New Canton, which meant, keeping her head down and not show that she was currently terrified of her current predicament. 

_**“Runner Five? Runner Five, can you hear me? Look, I was just playing a little joke on you.”** _Nadia came through her new headset trying to take back what she said before. Five scrunched up her nose in response

_A-a joke? What kind of a joke was that? Oh yeah lets Murder an Abel township runner when we've just built an alliance with said settlement, it'll be so funny!_

**_“‘Haha, you’re dead, Runner Five!’ Very funny… not! Not funny, not a joke! Just listen to my voice, Runner Five.”_** Sam interrupted bitterly, almost as if he'd read her mind, and Five wanted to listen to him, really she did, she wanted Nadia to shut up, she wanted to listen to the voice of the man who had saved her life more than once, swooping in to save the day at the last minute, but it was almost impossible when she was still under orders to listen to New Canton, and by that extent, Nadia.

 _ **“Maybe it got a little out of hand. But I wasn’t trying to… I just wanted you to see what it was like, not being able to trust what I saw or heard. We rely on trust out here! You used that against me.”**_ Nadia explained but Sam ignored her

_**“Runner Five, I’ve got no cameras inside. If you can hear me, then well, you know, shout”** _

“I can hear you” Five spoke into the headset "Sam, I can hear you"

nothing.

_**“...No, I guess not.”** _

_**“I think that last sniper shot -“** _

**_“Runner Five is fine! The building must be… it must be blocking the broadcast.”_ **

Okay, so now she couldn’t disappoint Sam by getting killed in here. She glanced at her hands her right hand was gushing with blood now, God, she hoped she hadn’t got any glass in there or that it wasn’t going to become infected. She could barely use her left hand, _what was she going to do if her other hand was severely injured?_

 _No_ , she couldn’t think like that now, the Dedlocks were going to figure she was in there, she she had to move, and she had to move now. She stood up, took a deep breath, and began to run again down the corridor of the building, passing room upon room

Hold on, what was that? She backed up and peered into the door to the right at the end of the corridor. Two Crisp spraying nozzles were on the conveyor belt in the room. 

“Those could be useful” Five said to herself thinking that Abel could do something with those, she grabbed them and shoved them into her backpack, zipping it back up best she could with the nozzles sticking out of the top of the bag before carrying on her way. 

_**“You know, I never said the park was safe. If Runner Five had kept an eye out-“** _

_**“So what do you think would have happened if an Abel runner died and a New Canton runner found their headset? You think they would have just left it there?”** _

_**“They wouldn’t have pretended -“** _

_**“They would! You know they would! Anyway, Lem gave Runner Five the headset, I heard him! He wanted Abel to have it, but you don’t care what he wanted!”** _

Nadia paused on the end of the comms 

_**“He… is that true?”** _

_**“Yes. You never bothered to ask, did you? You know what, I think you should just stop talking now. Runner Five, if you can hear me, ignore Nadia. Just head for the exit due north. The Dedlocks don’t seem to know about that one, and uh…”** _

Five turned and headed for the exit door, knowing that Sam was waiting for her bated breath in the comms operations shack back at Abel waiting to see if she was alive. She pushed open the door and it opened with a creek. 

_**“Yes! Runner Five, I see you! But you’re surrounded. Um, just… just run!”** _

Five did just that, running as fast as she could away from the factory, until the gunshots were only heard in the distance and she was no longer at risk of getting shot. 

_**“Hey, Five! What did you find in there, some… what are those? Giant crisp-spraying nozzles or something? That’s… that’s really great work!”** _

“Hey, Runner Five! Over here!” 

Five turned around to see Archie, Runner 20 from New Canton waving her over, Five smiled regardless of New Canton’s betrayal, she really liked Archie, she was nice, and she deserved to know what had just happened. She started to make her way over to the other runner.

 ** _“Careful, Five, she might be in on it.”_** Sam said cautiously. 

Five shook her head at Sam’s words, she couldn’t believe Archie would do something like that. 

“I heard that! In on what?” Archie asked as Five approached 

**_“Oh, you know, nothing major, just your friend Nadia trying a spot of murder.”_ **

“I am not in on anything! I was on a nice peaceful run going to check out another one of those weird empty campsites. You know those campsites, with all the clove hitch knots? Anyway, I saw Runner Five heading into the factory area, and I thought, “That’s stupid.” We all heard a week ago that the Dedlocks had moved in there, and … wait. Nadia tried to kill Runner Five? I know she was angry about Lem, but… no, she didn’t.”

_**“She did.”** _

Five nodded in confirmation of Sam’s words at Archie’s surprised look. Archie smiled warmly at Five

“Well, obviously, she didn’t succeed, so that’s alright, isn’t it? Um, all friends again?” 

_‘Oh Archie,’_ Five thought to herself _‘I wish everyone had your ability to see the good in everyone’_

 ** _“What?”_** Sam sounded almost insulted at that suggestion 

“Bygones can be bygones, old wounds under the bridge over troubled water? This way, Runner Five. Don’t worry about this stream, it’s not as dirty as it looks, although… is that a foot? Never mind, just ignore it and keep running. The Dedlocks don’t know about his route. Lem found it, actually.” 

_**“Yeah, Saint Lem?”** _

“He was a very nice man! And he saved Nadia’s life.” 

_**“So what? If it wasn’t for the Major, I wouldn’t be here either.”** _

“Exactly! And what would you do if she asked you -“

 _ **“I wouldn’t murder someone!”**_ Sam exclaimed and Archie gave Five a sympathetic and thoughtful look.

“No, well, this is not so nice, it is true.”

Sam sighed on the Comms before addressing Five. 

**_“It’s time to say goodbye to Archie, Five. I’m not leaving you in New Canton, not after that. You need to come back to Abel. We’ll find space, even if it means you’ve got to sleep with Janine. Well, not “sleep” sleep… You know what, it doesn’t matter. Just come home, Runner Five.”_ **

Five smiled at Archie apologetically before turning in the direction of Abel township but she hesitated for a second. Would the Major be okay with it? What about project Green Shoot? Didn’t the Major need her in New Canton for that? What about the shortage of beds in Abel? Wouldn’t it be better to go back to New Canton? No, she wanted to go back to Abel. She couldn’t carry on like this. She was needed there. Sam needed her there. And she needed Sam. 

“Five?” 

She smiled at her the voice on the headset before replying 

“I’m coming, Sam. I’m coming home” 


End file.
